Two of a Kind
by AsrarSonya
Summary: What will happen when Tru Davies finds out she has a long lost twin sister who is now living in an illegal secret organization called the 'Dollhouse? Who is Echo? How did she end up in the Dollhouse? And will Tru be able to save her?
1. Chapter 1

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**Two of a Kind**

**(A Tru Calling - Dollhouse Crossover)**

**Chapter 1**

_Early morning_

_Cemetery _

In spite of it being exceptionally hot at this time of year, she shivered like an abandoned dry leaf, blown in the autumn wind. The vapor floating in the air impairing transparency around the heated gravestone added another layer of blur to her tearful eyes. A sad reflection of the newly-shaken trust between the deceased mother and the confused daughter. A metamorphosis she certainly did not see coming. The gift her mother passed on to her was something she thought of as a miracle; a privilege she wanted to believe she deserved. For not only is she blessed with the opportunity to save lives, but also with the choice to change them. Her sacred duty is one she feared, yet cherished. A blessing that if misused, will turn into a deadly curse. Something her mother knew but did not wisely avoid.

"How could you?" she whispered as she desperately tried to catch her breath in between sobs. "How could you do this?"

So many questions wandered randomly in her head, trying desperately to find answers. Tru Davies has always been a quick-witted problem solver, but this time, the perplexity is beyond reason.

"Why did you keep it a secret? What were you afraid of? I'm sure you had a good reason to do what you did. You died trying to protect me, and you gave me the power to relive days, the least you could do was tell me."

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_Three days ago, _

_airplane_

"Alright, this one's easy" says Tru, "what's a 7 letter word for 'substance that releases fragrant smoke when burned'?"

"Hashish!" shouts out Harrison.

"Incense, Harrison… incense… Gosh! This isn't working…" Tru throws away the newspaper with the half-filled crossword puzzle.

"Oh, come on, Tru… This is fun, we're having fun" says Harrison.

"It would've been a whole lot more fun if we were going to London like I first suggested."

"London's boring, and it's British, and it's cold. Besides, Lindsey's there with her new husband" Harrison says sarcastically and enviously. "Los Angeles is American and warm" he says dreamingly while looking out of the airplanes window. "Disney Land, baby! _That's_ where the fun is."

"I can't believe you talked me into this."

"You said you needed a vacation."

"I didn't say I wanted to spend it with Mickey Mouse!"

"For your information, there's a lot more to Disney Land than Mickey Mouse."

"Whatever, as long as you're happy, then I'm happy."

"Aww! You're so sweet, sis" he leans over and gives his sister a kiss on the cheek. "Let's play something else. I got my Uno deck."

"No Harry, I can't focus right now, I'm really dizzy. I just want to try and get some sleep" confirmed Tru.

"I can't believe you're afraid of flying. All the time traveling you do, and you're afraid of flying?"

"I don't fly when I time travel. I just… wake up!" Tru's pale face and heavy breathing expose her stressed condition. She places her hand on her chest, and tries to swallow the fear.

"Just relax, sweetie. We'll be there in no time. Think of something nice… uh… birds… no, no not birds…. uh, dolphins… or flowers… or pizza..."

"blllllllluuuuughhhh!" Tru starts vomiting in a paper bag.

"Ooh! Nasty!" says Harrison to himself with a disgusted look on his face.

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_Next day, afternoon_

_Disney__ Land_

Harrison returns from his roller coaster ride, staggering and groaning as he approaches the side bench where Tru is treating herself to a chocolate chip and blueberry ice cream.

"How was your ride?" She asks with a smile.

"Intense" Harrison admits. "Is it me or is the world spinning?"

"Now who's having motion sickness?" Tru laughs. "I was thinking, since we have different tastes in what's fun and what's sickening, I think we should split up and make better use of our time here."

"Great! There's that 'Pirates of the Caribbean' adventure that I'm dying to try out" says Harrison.

"And I think I'll take the 'Jungle Cruise'" says Tru, while looking into a theme park pamphlet. "That looks like fun. I just hope I don't get sea sick."

"I'm getting sick enough for the both of us." Harrison says right before he throws up on the flowers planted on the side walk.

"Ooh! Nasty!" Says Tru with a disgusted look on her face.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: **

_Late afternoon _

_Disney Land, Jungle Cruise Adventure_

Tru has gone on the Jungle Cruise adventure alone, since Harrison opted to try out the "Pirates of the Caribbean" adventure. Seated comfortably in a riverboat, the late afternoon sun shines its soft rays on her chocolate brown hair. The big smile drawn on her face and the relaxed look in her eyes expose her delight in navigating areas that represent different continents and excitingly treacherous perils.

_"This ancient shrine located on the Irrawaddy river is where Buddhist monks have been performing their ritual prayers and offerings for centuries."_ The Jungle Cruise Guide tells the passengers on the riverboat.

Tru snaps a picture of the shrine, enjoying its magnificence and delicate design.

"This sure is a beautiful piece of architecture, and it's only a replica. Can you imagine what the real thing must be like?" A handsome young gentleman seated next to Tru in the riverboat starts a friendly conversation.

"Glorious, I'm sure!" Tru responds as she turns her head slightly to address him. Her heart beat starts racing when she notices how charming he is. Something about his eyes and voice tone makes her trust him even without knowing him.

"Have you ever been to Burma?" He asks.

"I have now! This is like playing make-believe, only more realistic."

"Make-believe? It seems like a very popular game these days!" His tone implies that he's hiding something. "So I take it you haven't been to Disney Land before either."

"No, I'm from New York."

"Must be exciting for you, then. Are you here alone?"

"No, I'm with my brother Harrison."

"Brother?" The man grins uncomfortably while glancing at her sideways.

"He's taking the Pirates of the Caribbean ride right now. Coming to Disney Land was his idea, actually. Although I rejected it at first, now it seems like a good idea after all. I feel like I've been around the world. There's a little bit of everywhere here."

"You can even go to space. I hear the 'Star Tours' ride is a winner."

"Space is fascinating, but only when I'm looking at it from Earth. I'm not the astronaut kind of girl. Being on a plane was painful enough for me. Harrison, on the other hand, is a big Star Wars fan. He loves science fiction."

"He does, doesn't he?" The young gentleman nods and secretly grinds his jaws together in anger.

_"Now ladies and gentlemen, we are streaming up the river Nile, please beware of the hippopotamus filled waters."_ The Guide says as noise and loud laughter starts rising.

A few minutes later, Tru cries out a sudden squeal when a large fake hippopotamus raises its head and opens its mouth in the water right next her. Her sudden reaction causes her to lean unintentionally toward the gentleman she was talking to. Embarrassed and amused all at the same time, she bursts out a laugh and apologizes.

"It's ok," he assures her with a smile. "It kind of took me by surprise, too!"

"My God… I can't believe I was startled by a plastic hippopotamus! I'm surrounded by dead people all the time, and this is what frightens me?" She says laughing.

The man looks at her with dazed astonishment. Tru realizes that she has just scared him off by giving him the wrong impression. But before she has a chance to explain, he starts talking.

"Listen… there's something I need to tell you. My name is…" he keeps on talking but the Tour Guide starts speaking on the microphone again, hindering his voice from being heard. Tru grins and shakes her head gesturing how she cannot hear him.

_"As we float on the South American Amazon River, we cannot help but be dazzled by the tropical rainforest on both sides. The magic and the wonder of the world's largest river add a sense of danger and mystery to it. Needless to say the alligators do as well." _The Guide excitedly states.

"I'm sorry, what? I couldn't hear you. What's your name again?" asks Tru.

"My name is Paul Ballard. I'm an FBI agent. I need you to come with me to the station when this ride is over." He shows her his badge.

"FBI… no no no no, you got it all wrong." She nervously stutters as she tries to explain what she does for a living: "I didn't mean… what I was trying to say… I… the dead people… well, you see… I work at the City Morgue, which is why I am surrounded by dead people. You can call my boss, Davis. He'll confirm and he'll send you my papers."

"You work… at a morgue!" he repeats slowly.

"Well, yeah… but I also go to Med school. I'm gonna be a doctor." Tru confirms. "I'm sorry; I realize I might have scared you. I'm Tru.... Tru Davies" She reaches out her hand for a shake.

"Tru! Well, Tru, it takes a lot more than that to scare me, and I'm afraid you're not who you believe you are."

"What do you mean?" She asks nervously thinking that agent Ballard might know something about her ability to relive days.

"You're real name is Caroline." He confidently tells her.

"I'm afraid you got the wrong person here."

"And Harrison isn't your brother. He's someone who had your mind programmed by a secret illegal organization called the 'Dollhouse' to be whatever he wants you to be and do whatever he wants you to do."

Tru starts laughing, "Are you pulling a late April fool on me?"

"I'm serious. I've been investigating the Dollhouse for two years now." He takes out a picture of Caroline that was sent to him by Alpha and shows it to her. "Someone sent me your picture."

Tru freaks out. "This isn't funny anymore. Where did you get this picture? Are you stalking me?"

"No," he confirms, "I'm saving you."

Agent Paul Ballard then shows his badge to the Guide and shouts: "FBI, I need you to pull over by the shore."

The guide is hesitant. "I can't pull over, these boats are operated automatically."

Agent Ballard pulls out his gun. People on board of the boat scream and shout. Tru is terrified. Paul grabs Tru's arm and forces her out of the boat. They both jump in the water and swim to the bank of the river. As they get out of the water, Tru runs into the fake jungle as fast as she can away from him.

"You're crazy!" She shouts "Stay away from me."

Ballard chases after her "Wait… please. Let me explain before they find us."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

_Meanwhile _

Harrison comes out of the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' adventure ride whining that it wasn't as magical and adventurous as he expected it to be, and wonders where he should go to ask for refunds. From afar, he notices his sister talking to a tall woman in her late forties.

"Hey, Tru!" He shouts, but she doesn't listen or pay attention. He then rushes to meet her. "Tru… I didn't know you were here, how was the Jungle Cruise?"

"I'm sorry, are you talking to me?"

"What.. Have you gone deaf? Yeah, I'm talking to you."

"Well, I haven't been on the Jungle Cruise yet."

"Well, if you're here for the Pirates, forget it… they ain't worth it. I say we go to 'Star Tours' instead" He suggests, then pauses for a minute before he continues: "Where's your manners, Tru? Aren't you gonna introduce me to your friend?" referring to the tall woman with her.

"This is not my friend," she says, "This is my mother."

Shocked at the revelation, "Mother?" He looks at the woman with wide astonished eyes. "Mom?" Harrison thinks that in some sort of supernatural way, his mother's spirit inhabited this woman's body. He immediately embraces her, and with a shaky low tone voice and tears in his eyes he says: "I missed you, mom."

"Who the hell are you?" The woman asks.

"I'm Harrison, mom. I know I was just a kid, but I remember you. Come on, Tru, tell her."

"Ok, this is cute, but you're freaking me out. And why do you keep calling me Tru? My name is Joy. Mom, what's going on? Do you know this guy?"

"Joy, honey, why don't you go buy us tickets for the next ride? Here, take my purse. I'll handle this guy."

Harrison is very confused, and his confusion escalates when the tall woman starts talking to him.

"So, what's your deal? You can't let go of your last engagement? News flash: Game over. She's with me now pal, so back off or I will call a certain number that we're both very familiar with, and get your ass kicked out of Disney in no time."

"What are you talking about?" Harrison asks her.

"You hired her to be what, your girlfriend, your escort, what?"

"Who?"

"Tru… who is this Tru you keep calling?"

"Tru's my sister."

"Sister? Is she dead too?"

"Dead? Listen, woman…"

"Name's Teresa."

"Listen, Teresa, I don't know who you are or what your deal is, but obviously something's not right, and I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell you're doing with my sister and why you're calling her Joy."

"Joy's my daughter, she died 4 years ago." Teresa says while lighting a cigarette. "She was only 12 years old. Some bastard kidnapped her and killed her to get back at me for not paying for the coke he sold me. I've been clean ever since."

"That's tragic. But does it give you the right to pretend that Tru's your daughter?"

"Wake up, son. That's not Tru, that's Echo."

"Echo?!"

"One of the actives in the Dollhouse. I only hire her once a year. That's all I can afford. I pay with the money Joy made in her short career as a model. I kind of pushed her into that. All she ever wanted was to be a kid and do all the stuff that normal kids do. I never listened to her needs… never cared. I was the ultimate stage mother. Echo is the perfect substitute, she actually resembles Joy. With her I can make up for all that and we could spend some quality time together, you know. Only I have them program her with some extra data each year to get a feeling that she's growing up. I'm sure you can relate."

"You're sick" Harrison confirms.

Echo/Joy walks toward them "Ok, we're all set. I got the tickets, now let's go." She tells her mother.

Suddenly Harrison carries Echo/Joy and runs away as fast as he can, thinking that he's saving his sister from this crazy woman. What he does not know, however; is that he is kidnapping Tru's long lost twin sister, whom they never knew existed. Teresa panics but tries not to draw attention. She calls Echo's handler, Boyd, for backup. Boyd jumps out of his van and runs in search of Echo.

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Tru is still running away from Paul Ballard, yelling at him to leave her alone and screaming for help. The chase is now close to where the Pirates of the Caribbean Adventure is located. Tru is trying to find her brother. As she approaches the area, Boyd grabs her and hides her behind some barrels.

"Are you ready for your treatment?" He asks her.

"My what?" Tru replies, trying to catch her breath. "Who are you?"

"Everything's going to be alright. Do you trust me?" Boyd asks.

"Trust you? Dude, I don't even know you."

"Looks like that chase caused you to glitch."

"Glitch?"

"Don't worry, I'll get you home safely. First I need to get you away from that man who's chasing you."

"Sounds like a good plan."

Boyd calls the van driver and tells him his exact location. Paul suddenly shows up and punches Boyd in the face, Boyd falls to the ground, they start fighting. Tru carries a barrel and smashes Paul on the back with it. Boyd and Tru then run to the van as it approaches. Paul Ballard shoots at Boyd. The van takes off.

As the van heads back to Los Angeles, Boyd lays back on the floor, bleeding heavily. A bullet wound left him motionless. Tru takes off his Jacket and shirt, opens her bag and takes out a small first-aid kit.

"Good thing I have this with me. You never know." She tells him. "Don't worry, these are all sterilized." She assures him while trying to control the bleeding gunshot wound by applying pressure.

"What are you doing?" Boyd amazed and bedazzled.

"I've done this before so don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I can't promise this will heal you though, but it will stabilize you until we get to a hospital."

"I guess I'm the one who needs a treatment now." Jokes Boyd. "Don't know if I'll make it to the hospital though, it's a two hour drive."

"What's your name?" Tru asks.

"Boyd Langton."

"Can you move your hands and feet, Boyd?"

He tries to move them but fails. "I guess not."

"That means that the damage has reached the spinal cord. Please sit still."

"How do you know all that? You're only sixteen."

"I'm twenty three, and I've done this before. Please don't talk, just focus on your breathing, I need you to take deep breaths."

Concerned for a man she has just met and not quite sure who he is, Tru proves once again that she is the real definition of a hero. For a hero does not necessarily mean possessing a supernatural ability or having physical strength, but a real hero is someone who would wholeheartedly go out of their way in trying to save someone or do good, even if it puts their life on hold or in danger. A hero is someone who invests time and effort in the attempt to improve the lives of others, and in her case, save them.

Unaware of their destination, Tru tries to calm him down. "Stay with me now, we're almost there."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

_Night _

_Los Angeles, Dollhouse_

The black van parks in the driveway of the Dollhouse. Two staff members come rushing with an ambulance stretcher, carefully place Boyd on it and rush into the elevator.

The elevator goes down then the doors open and Tru finds herself in a strange place that does not resemble the standard hospital design. Boyd is carried to Dr. Claire Saunders office.

Being a Med student, Tru quickly fills the doctor in on what happened and Boyd's recent condition.

"A shot in the back. I tried immobilization and applied pressure to the wound, but the two hour drive has caused him to go into Hypovolemic Shock. I think he's in stage four. There's a great amount of blood loss, extreme tachycardia with weak pulse, pronounced tachypnoea, significantly decreased systolic blood pressure, decreased level of consciousness; skin is sweaty, cool, and extremely pale. We have to operate on him STAT."

Dr Claire is shocked by the precisely accurate medical terms, but like what any professional would do, she remained focused and started prepping for operation with the help of the two paramedics and Tru, who played a big part in the performing of the operation.

Thirty minutes later, Boyd is lying unconscious in Dr. Saunders office, with Oxygen and glucose tubes. Tru is standing beside the window looking down on the main area of the Dollhouse.

"What is this place? I've never seen anything like it. Are you sure this is a hospital? It's so… soothing." She pauses for a minute then looks at Dr. Saunders and hesitantly says:

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but how did you get those scars?"

"I do mind." Dr. Saunders sadly answers.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to pry, I just…"

"You know, I didn't catch your name." Dr Saunders interrupts.

"Tru Davies."

"Are you a doctor, Tru?"

"Will be, hopefully. I'm a med student, and I work at a morgue. Do you have a phone? I really need to call my brother Harrison. He must be worried sick."

Very confused, Dr. Saunders excuses herself out of the office and heads to Topher's lab, where Topher has just entered after a long meeting with Adelle DeWitt.

"Dr. Saunders. What can I do for you?" Topher says with the usual wide smile on his face when he sees his favorite doctor.

"I thought you programmed Echo to be someone's sixteen year old daughter." She says.

"I did." He replies.

"And does that sixteen year old girl have any medical education, and goes by with the name Tru Davies by any chance?"

"Tru Davies? Medical education? Uh… I don't know where you're going with this, doc., but no. Her name is Joy Richmond, and she's just a high school kid with an average IQ."

"What was she wearing?" Asks Dr, Saunders.

"Jeans and a white T—shirt."

"Then how do you explain her professionalism in medical care? And her khaki shorts and brown tank top?"

"I…. don't know. Why? What happened?"

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At this point, everyone is misled, deceived or lied to. Tru Davies, the medical student from New York, who has the incredible ability to relive days, which she inherited from her deceased mother, did not know that she had a twin sister, and neither did her brother Harrison.

Echo, who was previously known as Caroline before entering the Dollhouse, is a mystery. Her recent state of being a blank doll to be used for personality imprints at the Dollhouse prohibits her of her basic rights of free will and the right to know who she really is.

Now as fate played a role in having both sisters indirectly cross roads, the roles have switched. Tru, who happened to come Disney Land for a vacation, has been mistaken by agent Paul Ballard and the Dollhouse staff alike to be Echo. Agent Ballard believes that she had been programmed to be someone named Tru Davies, while the Dollhouse staff members believe Echo has gone through some kind of deliberate mind manipulation that caused her to glitch.

Echo on the other hand, who was on an engagement at Disney Land, has been mistaken by Harrison Davies to be his sister Tru and is now held captive by him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: **

_Night_

_Disney Land Hotel_

Harrison is packing both his and Tru's suitcases.

"That's it, we're out-a-here. What's the matter, Tru? Help me out."

Sitting in the corner of the room, Echo/Joy cries and shivers as she tries to convince Harrison that she's not his sister Tru.

"Please… I need to go home, please."

"That's exactly where we're going, Tru. We can't be around those crazy people. Now get up and pull yourself together. By the way, were you wearing that this morning?"

"Please… don't hurt me. Please… my mom must be worried sick about me now, please let me call her."

Harrison's phone rings, he panics but picks it up.

"Hello."

"Harry, I'm so glad I found you. Listen, I had the craziest day today, I'll tell you all about it later. I'm in a hospital in LA right now; I had to save a wounded guy. But there's an FBI agent on my tail and I don't understand why. I'm not even sure he's _with_ the FBI. He thinks I'm someone else. I think Jack might have something to do with this. All the crazy mess usually starts happening when he's around. God knows what kind of sick, twisted crap he's up to now! Can you come and get me?"

Shocked by the phone call. Harrison looks at the girl in his room and says: "Tru! How can you be here _and_ there?"

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_Dollhouse_

Suddenly the call ends. Tru turns around to see who interrupted the phone call when her eyes meet an elegantly dressed woman standing behind. "Hello, Joy! It's time for your treatment." Declares Adelle DeWitt, the manager of the Dollhouse.

"Treatment? Why does everybody think I need a treatment? And my name is Tru. I just need a cup of coffee, and a sandwich. It's been a long day, and I'm very hungry."

"Very well. Please come with me." Adelle leads her outside of the office and downstairs where the actives are doing yoga on the bridge of the pond, while others are exercising or painting.

"Just wait here; I'll have someone help you in a minute." Adelle tells Tru.

"Ok, thanks." She responds.

Seated on the couch watching the actives in their daily routine, she wondered why they didn't have hospitals like that in New York. "Is this some kind of medical retreat? It's like a sanctuary!" She whispers to herself.

"Hello, Echo!" A sweet gentle voice addresses her. She lifts her head up to see a pretty young lady, standing directly in front of her. "How are you today?" the lady continues.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know you were talking to me. Have we met before? What's your name?" Tru gently asks.

"November! You know that, Echo"

"November… hmmm.... doesn't ring any bell, I'm sorry."

"What bell?" November innocently wonders.

"November, it's time for your treatment." Her handler calls.

"You have a treatment? Why, are you sick?" Tru asks.

November smiles at Tru and says: "I try to be my best. See you later, Echo."

"It's Tru!" She shouts. "And good luck with your treatment. Hope you get well soon." She tells November. Then she whispers to herself again: "What's wrong with people today? One man calls me Caroline, another calls me Joy, and now I'm Echo?!"

"Hey, Echo!" A male voice from behind her calls, but this time she knows that she's the one intended. She turns around to face the caller. It's Victor and Sierra.

"It's Tru, TRUUUU!" She confirms.

"What's true? Was there something false?" Victor asks innocently.

"Oh, God! Never mind. This is not a hospital retreat; this is obviously a high-class mental institution." She thinks out loud.

"Sierra and I are going to have a shower, you wanna join us?" Victor asks Tru.

"Excuse me?" Tru fires out.

"Victor, Sierra, please go to the showers now, Echo will be with you shortly." Adelle says, now standing with a cup of coffee in her hand that she hands to Tru.

Concerned with everyone's interest in her taking a shower with complete strangers "Hah?" she looks at Adelle.

"Don't worry. Drink this, your sandwich will be ready in a minute."

"Finally! Thanks." Tru says.

"But you have to get our doctor check on you. You've had a rough day, and we would like to make sure you're in good health."

"OK… _NOT _necessary, but OK."

"Excellent! Please try to relax while we prepare for your treatment."

Tru wanders around the Dollhouse, drinking her coffee and checking everything out as her wonder grows. She notices a message room, a dining area and a gym, before she finds herself entering a coed shower. Sierra and Victor wave to her, but her astonishment prevents her from any kind of response gesture.

"Tru? It's now time for your treatment. Please come with me." Adelle calls her and both ladies go upstairs and enter Topher's lab.

"What kind of a doctor are you? I've never seen so many computers in a doctor's clinic before." She embarks.

"That's because I'm the only doctor who is genius enough to use this technology." Topher flaunts.

"Just get on with the treatment, doctor." Adelle tells Topher before she approaches him and whispers: "You better do this right. We don't need another Alpha situation."

"No worries! The wipe will take all that glitching thing away. You don't think by any chance that Alpha had something to do with this, Do you?"

"Who else? Her entire imprint changed dramatically. I can't think of anything or anyone else that could have caused this. He is still determined to bring us down. He's determined to destroy the Dollhouse."

"The Dollhouse?!" Tru overhears their conversation. "Are you telling me that _this_ is the Dollhouse? So that FBI agent was right after all!"

Topher then pushes a button, a blue florescent light turns on, and Tru screams with pain, and then she looks at Topher and says: "Did I fall asleep?"

"For a little while."

"Shall I go now?"

"If you like."

Tru, who's memories are now wiped clean walks out of the lab.

"TRU!" A scary voice fills the air around her. She could not tell what it was, what it meant or where it was coming from.

"TRU!" The voice now becoming louder. "I need you, Tru!"

She follows the voice which leads her to Dr. Claire's office.

"What can I do for you, Echo?" Dr. Claire Saunders asks Tru while wiping a tear off her scarred face.

"You're hurt!" Tru tells Dr. Saunders, referring to the scars on her face. "Is that why you're crying?"

"No, Echo" The doctor responds, "I just lost a good friend. This man was my friend, and now he's dead." Referring to Boyd who died a few minutes ago.

Suddenly, Boyd's head turns to face the newly mind wiped Tru.

"Tru! We need you!"

**Tru's day rewinds. She sees quick flashes of memory:**

Harrison throwing up on the sidewalk

Her snapping pictures on the Jungle Cruise

A hippopotamus

Paul Ballard showing his FBI badge

Jumping in the water

Boyd getting shot

Dr. Claire's scarred face

The coed shower

The imprint chair

Suddenly she wakes up with the sound of Harrison jumping on her bed wearing a Mickey Mouse hat and singing:

"In the tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki tiki room  
In the tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki tiki room  
All the birds sing words and the flowers croon  
In the tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki tiki room"

"Wake up sis, time to have some fun. It's our first day in Disney Land! What do you say we warm up with the Roller Coaster ride?"

Her big brown eyes wide open. "OH. MY. GOD!!!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Two of a Kind **

**Day Two**

**Chapter 6:**

_Day 2_

_Late Afternoon_

_Disney Land_

"This was supposed to be a vacation! A vacation means leaving your job at home. Both your jobs! We're missing out on Disney Land for God's sake!" Harrison argues as he walks next to Tru, who is headed straight to the 'Jungle Cruise' adventure to meet FBI Agent Paul Ballard.

"I'm sorry for the inconvenience, Harrison. But I didn't ask to be kidnapped and have my entire existence wiped. Thank God for the rewind. This time it's not just my job to save someone's life, but I have to save my own as well. And I would appreciate it if you cooperate."

"Then why the hell are you trying to get to a man who tried to kill you yesterday?"

"He didn't try to kill me, he was trying to save me… try to catch up, Harr." Tru has already filled her brother in on the happenings of day one, but the complex events had him all confused.

"I still don't understand why everyone has mistaken you for some nuthouse resident."

"Dollhouse, Harrison. The place is called Dollhouse. And I don't understand its connection with me either. That place programs people's minds and uses them as toys to whoever's willing to pay."

"Sounds more like a whorehouse if you ask me!" Says Harrison. "And what's with the names? November, Alpha, Echo? What ever happened to Barbie and Ken?"

At that point, Tru spots Agent Ballard. "There he is… come on."

An anxious looking Paul Ballard has been tipped by an anonymous that the Dollhouse's Echo, whom he knows as 'Caroline', will be spending a day with the client who hired her at Disney Land. Insisting to meet Caroline directly after two years of investigating the Dollhouse's existence, and months of trying to find the mysterious Caroline, Agent Ballard is undercover and scoping the different rides and adventures in hope to find his target.

Tru Davies, who happens to be Echo's twin sister without either of them knowing about the existence of the other, is relying on her instincts which have never failed her before to solve this puzzle. Due to her ability to relive days, she is now aware of the existence of the Dollhouse, though still not aware that she has a twin somewhere. She has been mistaken by Agent Ballard and the dollhouse staff to be Echo, and had her memories wiped clean on day one. Her goal now is to avoid being taken to the Dollhouse again, in addition to preventing a possible kill. Telling the FBI Agent exactly what he wants to hear could be her only chance of achieving both goals. She decides that having her brother Harrison with her is extra safety insurance.

"How are you going to give him the inside information about this place without looking suspicious? You can't tell him about what happened… I don't think he'd be keen on the idea that you relive days." Harrison questions Tru's plan.

"Watch and learn, little brother." Tru says confidently, as she walks directly toward Ballard. He takes off his sunglasses as she approaches him, in shock that the object of his obsession is about to make contact with him right out of the blue.

"Excuse me, Sir... Are you Paul Ballard, the FBI Agent who's been investigating the Dollhouse for two years?"

Shocked, Paul grins and fires out: "How did you know…?"

"Same way I know you have a picture of me in your pocket. My name is Caroline, and I'm the one who sent you that picture." Remembering the picture he showed her on day one. "It's about time you showed up! Now we can stand here and be more obvious, or we can go somewhere to talk!"

* * *

_30 minutes later_

Hiding in a place overlooking the Pirates of the Caribbean adventure area, and after giving precise information about everything and everyone she remembers seeing in the Dollhouse on day one, Tru is showing Agent Paul Ballard and her brother Harrison the black van parked in the distance, telling him about the handler's job and describing the inside of the van.

"You have no idea how much help you have been, Caroline." Paul assures, "but you haven't told me how you remember all these details. Aren't you programmed to be on a mission now?"

"Yes, Caroline! Tell us how you can be two people at the same time!" Harrison teases his sister while she looks at him with daggers in her eyes.

"And you still haven't told me who this young gentleman is…" Paul asks referring to Harrison.

"Well," Tru slowly begins as she tries to fabricate a smart and convincing explanation, "I guess I'm not your average 'doll'. I don't respond well to the wiping process. And this guy… this is… Harrison Davies… the… guy who hired me to… tell you about the Dollhouse." She says with a smile.

"And I'm supposed to believe that the Dollhouse programs a doll to expose them?" asks Paul.

"No…" Her smile fades away as she realizes she's made a lame excuse. "I mean... I've known him from before I entered the Dollhouse, and he's helping me, and you, bring the place down. He just pretended to be hiring me as his sister Tru for one day."

"I see!" Paul says skeptically. "Well then, Mr Davies, if you care so much about bringing that place down, you could just spare me all the trouble and tell me where it is. You sure know the address, right?"

Both Tru and Harrison look baffled now.

"Or maybe I would just follow that van; that should lead me straight to the Dollhouse, don't you think?" Paul again implies that he's not quite buying into their story.

"No! Please don't." Tru shouts, "You would jeopardize our cover! That would endanger everybody." She explains, in an attempt to keep him as far away from Boyd as possible. "Why don't you take me and Harrison back to the station? I'm sure we can be more of help there."

Harrison suddenly takes his sister's arm and whispers, "Umm... speaking of the van… what's JACK doing in it?!!"

Tru looks at the van and in an unexpected twist is shocked to see her rival Jack Harper shaking Boyd's hand and getting into the van, taking the driver's seat.

"Damn it! This guy never gives up, does he? He had to travel all the way here to complicate my life even more." She secretly tells her brother. "Ok, change in plans." She declares. "Agent Ballard, why don't you take Harrison in for questioning…-"

"What?!" Harrison interrupts.

"…I have to go now… I promise you I will keep in touch and help you find the Dollhouse if you promise me you will not come near that van or follow it in any way. Please… you have to trust me." She tells Paul.

"Tru, you're going back to that place? That's suicide!" Harrison yells.

"Fine, I'll play along." Paul says as he hands Tru his cell phone. "Here, take my phone and give me yours. If you really want to help, then help me find this place." Somehow, despite his uneasiness toward Harrison, he feels like she's trustworthy.

She takes his phone and hands him hers. "Ok. I'll leave you a trail of pebbles that you can follow. Meanwhile, Harrison will help you know the full truth about who I am and where I come from." She tells him before she runs toward the van.

Sitting in the driver's seat drinking his coffee, Jack Harper is here to make sure the balance of the universe in preserved. His ability to relive days allows him to see what the victim has seen on his last day, which serves as clues to finding him. This time, the rewind brought with it some unusual flashbacks including, but not exclusive to, a black van with a Los Angeles license plate, a 'Disney Land' sign, and a sight of Echo, whom he thought was Tru, in a dominatrix suit and holding a whip! (Which was her last imprint before she was programmed to be 'Joy') Concerned and secretly intrigued, he's decided that flying all the way to California would help him make sure Boyd dies, in addition to avoid having Tru getting herself in unnecessary trouble. This way he would kill two birds with one stone.

"What the hell you think you're doin'?" Tru roars at him through the window of the van.

Startled, he drops some of the hot coffee on his pants. "Ahh, Jeez!! Tru… I could've settled for a simple 'hello'."

"And I could've settled for a simple vacation. But no… Fate had to screw me yet again, and now you're here to make sure I go through even more hell than I already have."

Jack laughs. "Actually, Tru, I'm here to make sure you don't!"

"And how's that, Jack? What's your big plan? Drive this man to his death? That it?"

"Correction: It's driving him to his 'fate'. You just called it 'fate' yourself a minute ago. It isn't fate if it isn't meant to be, right?"

"Correction: It is _not_ meant to be, because it hasn't happened _yet_! And it's _my_ fate to save him, not _his_ fate to die!"

"Is it your fate to end up as an empty puppet, too?" Jack breaks.

Tru is perplexed. "How did you…?"

"Know about the Dollhouse? Everybody knows about it, Tru. But what not everybody knows is that it actually exists. Congratulations! Now you're one of the few who do."

Tru is still shocked.

"Ah, don't give me that look. I get flashbacks too, remember? I gotta say, though… You look great in leather!"

Tru doesn't know what he means by that but isn't interested in asking. The intensity of their conversation is interrupted by Boyd.

"Joy, would you like a treatment?" Boyd asks nicely.

"Treatment?!" She asks as she remembers being on the imprint chair while Adelle and Topher were talking right before her mind went blank. "Can't we just… go for ice-cream?"

"What's the matter, Joy? Can't you see the man's _dying_ to give you a treatment?" Jack teases. "Come on, don't be rude. Hop in, he ain't got all day!"

"Thanks, new guy, but I didn't ask for your help." Boyd tells Jack.

"No, I guess you asked for hers!" Jack says with a smirk.

Tru gets on the van with Boyd knowing that although Jack's plan is to get Boyd killed, jeopardizing Tru's life or leaving her be prey for the Dollhouse is not on his agenda. The two hour drive back to Los Angeles should buy her enough time to think of a plan to save herself and Boyd.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**Thank you SO MUCH to all who reviewed/commented. I know it took forever to update, but better late than never, right! This is chapter 6. The next chapter will be up within a week, I promise. And it's going to be crazy! Stay tuned.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

_Late afternoon_

_FBI Office_

_Los Angeles_

"Well, this is interesting! In spite of his colorful criminal record, the kid is actually telling the truth." Loomis, the assistant, says referring to Harrison, as she hands Paul two separate sets of papers. "He's legit... and so is his sister Tru. Family records, Education, job, everything is legit, and detailed. But how did you manage to get her finger prints?"

"Her phone." Says Paul while looking into the papers.

"Clever!" Says Loomis. "So, how do you plan to celebrate?"

"Celebrate what?"

"Finding out who this Dollhouse's Caroline really is. This is the break through you've been waiting for, isn't it?"

"Hardly! The Dollhouse is still messing with me. They planted this information, I'm sure of it." Paul says with obvious frustration. "Keep digging. I'm sick of fabricated stories. I want the shocking truth, and I want it before this day is over. If you need me, I'll be in the interrogation room, beating the truth out of Harrison."

Just as he turns to go, the cell phone which Tru has given him vibrates in the inner pocket of his jacket accompanied by a ringing sound. His heart beats faster as he eagerly takes it out of his pocket and opens it. He recognizes the number as his own, knowing that Tru has sent him a message. He clicks to read the message, and shouts out to Loomis:

"251 Sunrise. Get on it now."

"I'm sorry? I don't speak Paulanese!" Loomis says. "Get on what exactly?"

"The address, Loomis… 251 Sunrise. I need you to check it out for me immediately. I want a full report on every building within a mile from it… satellite images, anything you can get me."

"Why don't you just send someone after them?"

"Because Caroline told me not to."

"Oh really?! And you're taking orders from Caroline, a.k.a the Dollhouse, now?"

"I trust her. I know she's trying to help me." His voice goes low as he looks at Tru's picture.

"Or screw you over again. Haven't you learned a lesson from the last time you got shot in the gut?" Loomis sarcastically comments.

"Loomis… address… now!"

"What happened to digging more on these Davies siblings, if that's what they really are?" She asks.

"That too."

"Ok, you're clearly delusional… and obsessed… and mildly cruel… not to mention unfair." Loomis says impatiently.

"Did I mention the big box of donuts that's gonna be on your desk first thing in the morning?" Flirts Paul.

Loomis looks at him diagonally with a slight twist in her mouth. "And a hazelnut cappuccino?" She asks.

"With foam and cinnamon on top." He assures.

"Now you're speaking _my_ language! I'll get right on it!"

"That's my girl!" Paul says with a smile that soon fades away as he gets another message from Tru.

"Left." The message says.

"Left? What does that supposed to mean?" Paul questions.

"Well," Loomis starts talking while hastily working on her computer, "she's either trying to tell you that she has left the Dollhouse and is on her way here. Or she's implying that the Dollhouse is on the left side of 251 Sunrise, which narrows down the search just a little bit."

Another message arrives that says: "Traffic light… right."

Paul pauses for a minute then shouts out in relief: "Pebbles! She said she'll leave me a trail of pebbles that I can follow, and that's exactly what she's doing."

"I don't understand." Says Loomis.

"Forget the report, the Dollhouse isn't on 251 Sunrise."

"Still in the dark here." Loomis's confusion increases.

"Caroline is still in the van, which means she cannot see where she's going. 251 Sunrise was just a starting point from which she is going to lead us to the Dollhouse by sending me messages with every turn they make. If we could estimate the time it takes to make each turn with the help of satellite images and maps, we can find out exactly where the Dollhouse is located. Genius!!"

"If she's still in the van, how did she know when they reached 251 Sunrise?"

"She's obviously resourceful… I'm sure she found a way." Paul says with admiration.

* * *

_Meanwhile_

_In the van_

"Take it easy, big guy. Why don't you put that gun back where it belongs, and I'll make sure we all get back to the Dollhouse safely, huh?" Jack tells Boyd, who is now sitting in the front seat next to him, with his gun pointed at Jack.

"You try a stunt like that again and I'll make sure you don't." Says Boyd angrily. "Who appointed you as our new driver anyway?" He asks suspiciously.

"Ms. DeWitt, of course!" Says Jack. "But what she did not tell me is her intention to recruit innocents against their will. Is that how it's done these days?"

"What're you talking about?" Asks Boyd.

"Tru… she doesn't belong in the Dollhouse… she's not a doll. Why are you forcing her to be one?" Jack frankly says in Tru's defense.

"Who's Tru?"

"I mean Joy, or whatever you feel like calling her?"

"I don't know what prank you're trying to pull here Mr., but Echo has been a doll for two years. And no one's forced her into anything. She volunteered."

"Echo? Two years?" Silently deep in thought, Jack looks quite uncomfortable and perplexed.

"So what's your agenda? You're helping Alpha? Are you his partner?"

"Alpha?" Jack is even more perplexed. "What do you mean?"

"Are you trying to save Echo from the Dollhouse by putting _me_ in harm's way?" Boyd anxiously asks.

"Of course not, buddy. What happened back there was just an accident. Come on, you know that… why would I want to hurt you? I just met you."

"I don't trust you." Confirms Boyd. "You stopping at 251 Sunrise to buy Echo some ice-cream insisting that I wait for the two of you in the back of the van, only to find out you deliberately left the breaks unsecured so the van would roll down the street and crash into the old gas station. Doesn't look like an accident to me."

"Well, believe what you want to big guy, you're lucky Tru is a fast runner and got to catch up with the van and jump onto the driver's seat just in time to secure the breaks. Otherwise, it would have been a tragedy!"

"Why you insist on calling her Tru? It's Echo imprinted with a girl named Joy."

"Got it." Says Jack.

"And that's what I don't get. Why would a 16 year old imprint go out of her way in trying to save my life while you're just standing there with an ice-cream cone?"

"Maybe I was distracted… maybe she's not a 16 year old imprint…" Jack teases as he takes the last turn into the underground driveway of the Dollhouse.

* * *

_Back at the FBI Office_

"Dollhouse." Reads the last message that Tru sent.

"Ok, I think we found the Dollhouse!" Says Paul with relief zooming in on the building shown by satellite pictures on the screen.

"Uhh… I think we found a lot more than that!" Says a very concerned-looking Loomis, "you're not gonna believe this! You want the shocking truth? Well, here it is." She continues as she hands Paul some papers that came by fax.

Paul reads the papers carefully as his eyes widen with shock.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Hi! Thanks again for everyone who commented. I know that I promised to update within a week from my last update, but life doesn't always go as we wish :( I apologize.**

**I know that Dollhouse (the show) went differently in real life than in my story, like for example Paul is no longer an FBI agent, but he still is in my story, but that's because I started writing this fic when Dollhouse was only half way through season one. I couldn't change my original story too much. **

**Anyway, I hope you're enjoying it. More updates coming. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

_Night_

_Dollhouse_

_Imprint Room_

Boyd walks into the imprint room followed by Tru and Jack. Topher is preparing for the wipe.

"Bravo!" Shouts out Topher, holding his arms wide open with a big smile.

Tru quickly tries to explain: "Don't be too excited, Doc. I'm only here to treat a situation, NOT to get any of your sick treatments."

Tru's response leaves Topher and Boyd confused, but not alerted. Jack on the other hand knows exactly what she meant by that.

"Topher Brink!" Jack greets with a hand-shake and a smile. "Long time no see!"

Tru immediately wonders: "You two know each other?"

Enthusiastically and ever so arrogant, Topher explains: "Bravo is one of our best actives, with special abilities." He says with a wink.

With great shock, Tru turns toward Jack and gives out a loud cry: "You're a doll?!"

"Was… I was a doll, or how we'd like to call it an active, but I was released two years ago." Jack confesses.

Unconcerned with all the hyped up emotions in the room, Topher continues: "Seeing you step foot in this room again makes me feel oh so proud! How's life, and 're-life', treating you, my friend?"

Jack looks at Tru, whose face is as yellow as a lemon and answers "Life? Well, you know how life can be… beautiful, hard-headed, challenging, and mostly unfair." Cunningly referring to Tru herself.

Tru speaks very slowly while staring into Jack's eyes: "What does all this mean?" She questions, "All this time… you… everything was a lie?"

"No, Tru. Everything is real. My life in the Dollhouse was before I met you. I am not a doll anymore. I'm me… Jack Harper is my original self. Only one thing is different. The Dollhouse granted me an additional gift…"

"The ability to relive days?" Tru guesses.

"Yes." Jack asserts. "Which makes me wonder how you got yours."

"From my mother… she passed it on to me." Tru recalls.

"But your mother has been dead for more than ten years. Think about it, Tru… why did you get your ability only two years ago? Just around the same time I got mine. Coincidence?"

"What are you trying to say, Jack?" Tru asks.

"My buddy Boyd here says you've been in the Dollhouse for two years. You do the math, Tru."

"I have never even heard of the Dollhouse until yesterday. Besides I live in New York, in case you've forgotten."

"There is a Dollhouse in New York! And there's also a thing called a sleeper active. You can be imprinted with one persona or ability and be anywhere in the world, for any number of years. Do you honestly think that reliving days is some kind of supernatural ability that you inherit from a dead person? Haven't you ever wondered how I got mine? I'm sorry that I have to be the one who drops this bomb on you, Tru, but it is just a magical ingredient made in a lab somewhere?"

"Uhhh… Not somewhere… HERE! Though I don't remember imprinting Echo with that ability. As a matter of fact, I'm sure I haven't." Topher asserts before he turns at Boyd and whispers: "Why is he calling her Tru?"

"Beats me, I don't know. He's been calling her Tru all night." Says Boyd.

"And she's responding to that name!" Topher remarks. "Maybe it's a glitch. I need to wipe her now before it gets worse."

"No!" She cries. "This is crazy. I'm not a doll. I have a life, and a job, and a family. All this cannot be just some freaking program planted in my head. I know it's not." She says with desperation and slight suspicion and fear that Jack might be telling the truth. She doesn't know what to believe any more.

Topher interrupts: "I have a job too, so can we please start with the treatment?"

"No!" Shouts Tru.

"Ok, as cute as this little charade is, I don't have all the time in the world," says Topher. "Boyd, Jack, can you please put her in the chair, and let's get this over with?"

Both men try to grab Tru against her will and put her in the imprint chair, but her aggression in resisting their grip gives Boyd a kick in the groin and Jack a punch in the face. At that time, the familiar voice and British accent of Adelle DeWitt interrupts them from across the room.

"Stop at once!" And everyone obeys in a phobic reaction. Adelle fixes her gaze at Tru and continues: "Let her go."

"Why?" Asks Topher.

"Because that's not Echo." Replies Adelle.

The imprint room elevator door opens and Echo, who is imprinted with Joy's persona, walks in with the tall woman who hired her.

"THAT is Echo." Says Adelle.

Shocked to a stratospheric level and almost hyperventilating, Tru's aggressive facial expressions change dramatically to a mix of fear and disbelief. The two sisters stand face to face for the first time ever. Neither one of them has ever been aware of the existence of the other. Neither has anyone in the room, except Adelle, who was informed only minutes ago by a phone call from Richard Davies, Tru's and Echo's father.

A quick flashback takes Tru's memory back to something Harrison said to her on the phone in day one: "Tru, how can you be here _and_ there?"

"What is this?!" She says in utter confusion. "You make clones too?"

"Not a clone Miss Davies." Replies Adelle. "If you and Mr. Harper would be kind enough to come with me to my office, I'd like to have a word with you. Topher, please make sure Echo gets her treatment."

"A treatment sounds great." Says Joy/Echo as she seats herself comfortably on the imprint chair.

"But…" Starts Tru.

"I will explain everything, Miss Davies. Please." Adelle assures, guiding her out.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**In this chapter, everyone was confused, even Tru herself didn't know what to believe. Jack was actually starting to believe that she is a doll, just like he was. Of course, when the two sisters meet face to face, everyone realized that there is 'Echo', and there is 'Tru', and they are both different people who look exactly the same. More revelations in the next chapter. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

_Night_

_Dollhouse_

_Adelle DeWitt's Office_

Delicately pouring tea from a small green Japanese kettle, Adelle calmly and gracefully tries to explain the mix-up while avoiding anything that might jeopardize the safety of her favorite active, Echo.

"24 years ago, your mother, Elise Davies, got pregnant with twin girls." Adelle explains.

"That's impossible." Interrupts Tru.

"During her pregnancy, a secret arrangement was made so that one of the twins is adopted by a family living in Los Angeles immediately after birth."

Sinking in her seat, Tru is still in a state of shock.

"Caroline Davies was born in New York on December 12th, 1980, weighed 5 lbs and 9 oz, given directly to her new foster parents, the Farrells. No official papers were issued of the adoption. In her birth certificate, she's registered as Caroline Farrell."

"No…" Tru says with a choked voice, her eyes filling up with tears.

"Ten minutes later, her twin sister was born, and kept... you."

"You're lying..." Dumbstruck, Tru cannot comprehend all that she is hearing. "My mom would never have given her daughter away for adoption… never!" She emphasizes stressing her teeth against each other in anger.

"You're right, she never would have, and she never did." Reassures Adelle. "She was told that the first baby was born dead. Besides the birth certificate, there are no existent public records of Caroline's connecting her to her biological parents except a fake death certificate."

With disordered thoughts, Tru stutters: "But… why?… I mean… who would do that?"

"Your father." Concludes Jack.

"Correct." States Adelle.

"Dad?!"

"It all makes sense to me now." Jack continues.

With tears now falling heavily down her red cheeks, Tru turns to face Jack, with a desire to knock him unconscious and a hope that he would explain to her what is going on, she angrily says: "Care to enlighten me?"

"Your mother did not just pass on her ability to relive days to you. She passed it on to you _and_ your twin sister Caroline. The two of you would've been invincible and the balance of the universe would have been severely corrupted. Your father could not allow that, so splitting you at birth was the only way to stop that from happening."

"But why? Why would dad do that?"

"Because your dad was your mother's rival… he was her opposite." Jack finally reveals. Tru's face falls with the avalanche of bad news. Waves of emotion continue to wash over her as Jack explains: "Like me, his job was to preserve the balance of the universe, make sure your mother didn't alter destiny."

"But splitting the two at birth was not enough..." says Adelle. " Richard Davies is a very smart man; one who does not take risks. He kept an eye on Caroline, and when he found out that she and Tru started reliving days simultaneously almost two years ago, Richard facilitated Caroline's recruitment into the Dollhouse in exchange for the release of a male active who would be imprinted with Richard's beliefs and abilities to be your rival."

"You!" Tru tells Jack with apparent bitterness.

"Yes!" Jack sadly admits.

"Caroline on the other hand was no longer a threat. She's wiped. She is now Echo." Says Adelle.

"But how come I was never told about Echo… um...Caroline?" Wonders Jack.

"Probably for the same reason I was never told about Tru!" Answers Adelle. "Richard is a gambler, a very good one may I say. Bluffing is a gambler's biggest strength. He played us all I suppose."

"Then how did you find out about all this?"

"He phoned me today before the two of you arrived, and filled me in on both of your agendas, concerning, and therefore jeopardizing, Boyd's life, and probably yours and Echo's. I cannot have that; not in my House. So Richard and I made a deal. The Dollhouse will do no harm to Echo if you agree to spare Boyd's life and take the next flight back home."

"Harm? What do you mean harm?" Shouts Tru.

"I can have her sent to the Attic." Says Adelle.

"What's the Attic?" Asks Tru.

"Dolls Hell." Answers Jack.

"She's already shown some quite alarming signs of evolvement and self-awareness, something the Dollhouse cannot afford to tolerate. It was only a matter of time. But if you agree to our terms, she will be safe… you have my word."

"Can I see her?"

"Absolutely not!"

"Please!"

Even Jack couldn't stay quiet; he jumps in to help Tru. "Oh come on Adelle, it's painful enough that Caroline was sacrificed twice, even without her knowing, and Tru was cheated and lied to without her knowing either. Couldn't you at least just give them the chance to meet each other? They're sisters, it's their birth right. I personally guarantee you that Tru and I are on the next flight to New York, while Boyd and Echo are both safe and sound here at the Dollhouse."

Adelle considers it for a moment then agrees "Very well, you have ten minutes; then you and Jack are leaving, for good."

"Oh we're leaving; but this isn't over. You and I _will_ meet again, and the next time I'm here, I'm not leaving without my sister." Tru threatens.

Adelle laughs "You're just like your sister, Tru; dedicated and driven but lacking all sorts of wisdom."

_

* * *

_

_FBI Office_

_Interrogation Room_

Paul slams the table in front of Harrison so hard that all the papers scatter. His eyes are narrow and fixed; his body language is screaming fury and tension. The pitch of his voice is high enough to set Harrison's pulse rate to a speed of 200 beats per minute.

"I'll tell you what… maybe if I punch your ugly face so hard that it pops out of the back of your head it would jog your thick memory."

"Dude, I told you I don't remember," Harrison says with a very dry mouth, "I was only 9 years old when mom died; and soon after that our dad left us. I don't remember anything about the murder, and I certainly don't know a thing about a long lost sister. Where did you even get that? That's total bull."

"Bull? And what do you call all the stories you've made up from the moment we met up until now? Lies, more lies and nothing but lies."

Harrison exhales heavily with frustration and fear. He tries his last resort and is surprised that he never thought of it before "Man, I told you everything I know. If you have anything against me then why don't you just save us both the time and nerves and arrest me right now and get me a lawyer; otherwise, you just back the hell off and let me get out of here." He stands up and initiates to leave the room when Paul catches him from his shoulder and forces him to sit down again.

"Who murdered your mother?"

"I told you I don't know. The man who murdered mom was never caught." Harrison fires back.

"How did you find out about the Dollhouse?"

"I'm not answering any more questions without a lawyer." Harrison finally states.

Their conversation is interrupted by the ringing in Paul's jacket. He picks up the phone, it's Tru.

* * *

_Dollhouse_

Walking gently down the stairs to the main area of the Dollhouse, Tru is on her way to meet Echo but decides to call Paul so she could fill him and her brother in on the latest discovery.

"Marco!" Answers Paul.

"Polo!" Tru replies. "Don't worry, my head is still intact."

"What's going on over there, are you OK?"

"Mentally yes, emotionally a wreck. Listen… I need to speak to my brother."

"Tru, there's something I need to tell you that I don't think you're gonna like."

"Something happened with Harrison?"

"No, your brother's fine."

"Speak for yourself, hotshot!" Shouts Harrison.

"It's about your sister."

"Caroline!" Tru says with a nod.

"Yes! It took extreme search methods to find out about her existence. How did you find out?"

"Extreme shock." Says Tru. "I found myself standing 4 feet away from a twin sister I never knew I had. Then the person who runs this place, Adelle DeWitt, explained everything." She says as she reaches the last step down the stairs. She notices Jack lost in thought while peeking through a glass door in front of the stairs.

"See, that's what I don't understand," says Paul, "if you had never known about or met Caroline, then how come you pretended to be her today and gave me minute information about the Dollhouse?"

* * *

Jack is looking through a glass door into Dr Saunders office. She notices him peeking.

"Can I help you?" She asks politely.

Jack walks into her office looking concerned. "Whiskey, what happened to your face? Are you waiting for Dr Saunders?"

She looks at him, shocked.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

_Dollhouse_

_Main Area_

With Paul's last question, Tru realizes she's stepped right into a mouse trap. He has obviously found the truth about her having a twin, and is well aware that the Dollhouse's Echo is Caroline. But how will she be able to explain to him why she pretended to be Caroline if she has just admitted to have met her only minutes ago? And how will she explain her knowledge of the Dollhouse and its people without telling him that she had been there on a day that restarted all over again with a call for help from a dead person. This is an FBI agent who doesn't believe in mystical forces. He only deals with physical facts, and right now, he's pointing fingers at her and probably at her brother.

Finding herself trapped with his smart question, in addition to her disappointment with her father's lies and deceptions made her feel helpless in the same way she did on day one when she was on the imprint chair, seconds before the wipe. Suddenly, that feeling triggers a memory of the conversation Adelle and Topher were having right next to her when she was sitting on that chair:

Flashback:

_"You better do this right. We don't need another Alpha situation."_

_"No worries! The wipe will take all that glitching thing away. You don't think by any chance that Alpha had something to do with this, Do you?"_

_"Who else? Her entire imprint changed dramatically. I can't think of anything or anyone else that could have caused this. He is still determined to bring us down. He's determined to destroy the Dollhouse."_

End of Flashback

"Alpha!" She thinks aloud.

"What?" Asks Paul who overheard her on the phone.

Tru ties up more missing links.

"Caroline's photo!" She says, "The one in your pocket. How did you get it? And how did you know that she was going to be at Disney Land?"

"Anonymous tip." He replies.

"Not anonymous. It's Alpha!"

"Who's Alpha?"

"Apparently he's a doll who'd escaped from the Dollhouse and is determined to bring it down any way he can." She concludes and decides to use this information as camouflage to cover up on how she knew about things in order to distract Paul and get herself and her brother off his radar. "He's the one who filled me in on all the inside information," she lies, "but asked me to disguise as Caroline. In doing so, he made sure I would pass all the information to you, and get myself into the Dollhouse to meet her."

Enthusiastically Paul asks "Can you give me anything about this Alpha that I could use? His real name? What he looks like?"

Tru spots Echo at the art room. "That's for you to find out. Right now, I need to go."

"Wait…" He screams, but the call ends.

* * *

_Dr Saunders Office_

Claire Saunders has just heard Jack call her Whiskey. She remembers him as an ex-doll, but suddenly isn't sure if that memory belongs to her or not. "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm Dr Saunders."

Jack's face goes blank with the news. He knows now that the actual Dr Saunders must have died and been replaced with the injured Whiskey.

"Was there something you wanted?" She asks.

"Actually, I just thought that while I'm here I'd see if everything is in check."

Before saying anything else, Jack's phone rings. It's Richard Davies, Tru's father.

He walks out of Dr Saunders office and picks it up. "You have a slick way of showing your real teeth, Richard."

"I warned you about going there, Jack; but you refused to listen." Richard says.

"Why don't we spare each other the ping-pong and get straight to the point. I already know what you did to Caroline and why, but what I don't understand is why you felt the need to get me out of the Dollhouse and plant me with your ability when you could have played the role of Tru's opposite yourself just like you did with her mother."

"Because I lost the ability to relive days soon after Tru's mother died. I was denied of my power as a punishment. I'm not allowed to regain it, or implant it. Not onto myself anyway."

"A punishment for what?"

"Having Elise murdered!"

"You killed Tru's mother?!" Jack shouts in shock while the actives Sierra and Victor look at him with expressionless faces as they walk by.

"No, I couldn't kill her myself; I hired a hitman."

"Aww, somebody give the man a medal of honor!" He says sarcastically. "What had gotten into you? That's not how we get things done!" Jack says with anger.

"I didn't have a choice. Somehow she found out that Caroline was alive. She knew where she was staying and she was planning on getting her back. It was about to become three against one."

"And the best way you could think of was to get rid of them one at a time?! Never knew you were that weak, Richard; or that sick!"

"If I had taught you anything, Jack, I would assume it's that 'the end justifies the means'."

"Wrong guess, Richard. You didn't teach me that, you planted it in my head like every other rotten crap you believed in. And you know what eventually happens to rotten plants? They get pulled out from the roots." He says while looking upward at Topher's lab.

"What are you talking about?"

"Talk to you later, Richard." Jack says before he hangs up.

* * *

_Topher's lab_

Topher and Boyd are getting the full story on Tru and Echo directly from Adelle DeWitt. Boyd looks sad and distracted while Topher looks giddy and amused.

"So, Echo is Tru's echo?" Asks Topher with a wide smile.

"I believe the term used is 'twin'." Adelle says.

"No I mean she is literally her echo. Both of them can relive days, right? But since Echo's ability is supernatural and not physical like Jack's, the wipe cannot, or did not take away her ability. I believe that since she is genetically and supernaturally connected to her sister Tru, she is affected by Tru's power. But only one of them gets a request for a second chance from the dead which triggers the rewind, and since Echo is unavailable because of the usual wipe or imprint, Tru is the one in charge. Echo on the other hand gets to relive the same day Tru does by default. Meaning that whenever Tru's day rewinds so does Echo's. But what I don't understand is how come we never knew about Tru? Don't we have people who are paid for an extensive background check? "

"Well, they screwed up obviously!" Says Adelle before turning to face Boyd and try to engage him in the discussion: "Mr. Langton, you must be feeling quite relieved."

"On the contrary, I feel quite gutted." He says. "The person who tried to kill me today is the one we created, and the person who tried to save me is the one we've wronged. Tell me how that is a relief?"

"You are Echo's handler Mr. Langton, not Tru's. Remember that. Growing unnecessary compassion toward Tru will put your life as well as theirs at risk. You and Echo are safe here, while Tru and Jack will be playing their usual cat and mouse game in the east coast where they belong." Confirms Adelle.

"What about Tru? You think she's going to forget about all this and go on with her life?" Boyd wonders.

"Of course not! She's just like Caroline… only a little less irritating. Now that she knows the truth, she will stop at nothing to make things right. I think she believes that with every fiber of her being."

Topher jumps in his seat and shouts as if hit by a lightning: "Every fiber of her being! Of course… that's it!" then he goes to check something on his computer.

Boyd walks closer to Adelle and looks her straight in the eye. "If she will stop at nothing to make things right, why don't we save us all the trouble and make it right for her?"

"Because we are not in the business of making things right unless paid to do so, Mr. Langton. I understand that what Richard Davies did to his family is unforgivable, but his decision to keep it all a secret hidden from us not only put the Dollhouse and everyone in it, especially Echo, at risk, but it also stirred more negative emotions against him and the Dollhouse that could cause some serious future chaos."

"Yeah… Meanwhile those two sisters are the ones who have to pay the price." Says Boyd.

"That's not of our concern." Says Adelle with a high pitch in her voice. "What matters to us now and to you in particular Mr. Langton is keeping an eye on Echo both inside and outside the Dollhouse. Given the current circumstance, Echo must remain without an engagement long enough for us to study the situation and decide on a course of action. Echo's safety and protection is our first priority. Meanwhile, she must remain in a blank doll-state."

Topher jumps off of his seat after confirming a theory that he got and immediately tells Adelle: "She may be a doll but she's definitely not blank."

"What are you talking about? I thought you wiped her."

"Oh, she is wiped clean, but she's not blank."

"Explain." Says Adelle.

"The brain processes information in three steps: encoding – storage – and retrieval. Just like a computer. Our work here deals with the storage part of the brain, or what we call memories. We wipe them, we compile them, we re-imprint them. Easy peasy! BUT, that's not all. We also have to consider that neurotransmitters, which are the messengers of consciousness, are not just limited to the functions of the brain but have an effect on the whole of the body. Each cell has a memory, an emotional state, and a blueprint of our basic coding as unique individuals. Given such immanence of biochemical information, it is reasonable to assume that consciousness exists and permeates throughout the whole of the body, like you said "in every fiber of our being", even though it is undeniable that the principal command post of consciousness is the brain. In Echo's case of reliving days, memories are written and then re-written. Even on a blank slate, the re-writing of events forces memories to resurface and assert themselves, which is the main factor in forming her highly developed 'blankless doll-state' compared to all the other dolls."

"When I said explain, Topher, I meant in English." Adelle tells him.

"OK, bottom line is, because of her ability to relive days, Echo is slowly and gradually remembering and growing a certain level of self-awareness that eventually will result in her evolving into a fully mature person."

"Are you saying that somewhere within Echo, Caroline is rising?

"No, not Caroline… Echo! … Echo is rising and turning into a unique person with the skills and memories of all her previous and future imprints."

"That's utterly unacceptable! You must wipe her ability to relive days completely. She must stay as ignorant as all the other actives."

"That's impossible!" Says Topher. "Like I said before, her ability is supernatural, it can be scanned and copied like we did with Richard's, but it cannot be erased unless by supernatural means, which we do not have access to."

"Well find access." Adelle

"I can't."

"I can." Says Jack while leaning against the glass door of the imprint room. "But you're gonna have to do something for me in return."

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**In this chapter I tried to solve what I believe to be two of the biggest mysteries of both shows (Dollhouse + Tru Calling). In Dollhouse, it was never obvious why Echo was remembering and evolving while the other dolls where not. So in this chapter I explain that it is because of her reliving days. And in Tru Calling, we never got to know why Tru's mother was murdered by her father, and how Jack got his ability. I hope it is obvious in this chapter.**

**Thank you to all who commented and reviewed. Your insight is always appreciated. **

**Stay tuned for the next chapter where Tru and Echo engage in an emotional conversation. And as always a couple of surprises are in stock ;) **


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11 **

_Dollhouse_

_Art Room_

Tru walks slowly toward the Art Room where her twin sister Echo is seated comfortably on a cushion, fully indulged in her artwork. Feeling as if looking at her own reflection in an alternate reality, a face that is hauntingly familiar, Tru gulps in hesitance, not quite sure what to say. How will she communicate with someone so close to her, yet so distant? How can they share blood, looks and mystical wonders, but not one single memory?

Echo lifts her head up toward Tru noticing her slow advances. "Good day!" She says with a smile.

"I don't know about that!" Says Tru sadly as she sits on a cushion next to Echo. Their eyes focused on each other in awe. All sounds around them diminish. The rest of the world seems to disappear.

Having gone through a mind wipe herself on day one, if only for a few minutes before the day rewound, Tru can't help but recognize just how vulnerable her sister looks. Like a little child who is always innocent and trusting, observing the world without any of the emotions, attitudes or previous assumptions that grown-ups have; things that are caused by our attachments, needs, fears and guilt. She is aware of the heavy burden to be the logical all-wise sister, and fears that this one-sided conversation between her and her other half would go in vain.

"I don't know what I'm doing here or how I got to this point." Tru starts talking. "You can call it fate, or coincidence… All I know is that I woke up this morning with a mission… and now it seems that it was only a small step forward to a larger, far more complex mission that is beyond my calling, and probably beyond my reach. I don't know what to say to you. I don't even know how to connect to a doll… an empty shell… a ghost of my sister radiating this… this sense of helplessness…"

"You can't fight a ghost." Remembers Echo.

"No… but I can save one." Replies Tru. "You and me… we're unique… we belong together."

"Why?" Echo wonders.

"Because… we're two of a kind."

"Are you me?" Asks Echo.

Eyebrows raised, Tru's concerns for having a fruitful ten minute conversation with her sister escalates. "No!" She answers in a low voice.

A look of innocent wonder overtakes Echo's facial expressions compared to Tru's concerns. "Am I me?" She asks.

Not sure how to answer that, "Not exactly…" says Tru.

"But, you look so much like me. Are you one of them?"

Intrigued by the question, Tru asks "Who?"

"The people they put in my head?"

Surprised with the answer, "No… I'm Tru." She says.

"True?"

"Yes."

"Does that mean I'm fake?"

"No! No… You're not fake… you're real… primitive maybe, but very real… just like me. Tru is just my name."

"My name is Echo."

Tru pauses a little to take a breath, and then she says, "Nice to meet you, Echo!" before her voice chokes and tears start filling up in her eyes. "I'm looking forward to meet who you used to be. I want to know everything about you… her. What she majored in, how she lived her life, if she had any pets… hobbies, favorite movie, favorite food…"

"I like broccoli… and Yoga." Says Echo.

"That's what they taught you here. What I want to know is what you taught yourself out there."

Still a little distracted and intrigued by the great resemblance, Echo feels the urge to understand more. "Did Topher make me look like you?"

"No…" Tru says then sighs and explains, "God did."

"God? Is he here too?"

Tru lets out a much needed laugh that forces a tear to trickle down her cheek, realizing how hard it is to talk abstracts to a mind that is lost in a state of oblivion. Echo notices the tear, not quite sure how to react. "You're sad." She says.

"I am." Says Tru. "I'm sad to see you here when I know you should be home. You're… you're stronger than this… better than this."

"I try to be my best."

"Well, I'm afraid it's not good enough." Tru's voice angrily takes a higher pitch. Then she takes another deep breath and pulls herself back together after noticing an uneasy look on Echo's face. "I'm sorry, I just…" Still not sure what to say, Tru takes out her wallet from her purse and flips it open to show Echo some pictures. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words.

"Look… this is a picture of me and my sister Meredith. You're my sister too, Echo."

"She doesn't look like us." Says Echo.

"That's because you and I are twins. You know what that means?"

"Like beds?"

Tru smiles. "It means we were born together on the same day. That's why we look alike." Tru says while flipping to another picture.

"And this here is our brother Harrison."

"I remember him. I have a picture of him too!" reveals Echo.

Tru is shocked. "What? How?"

Echo shows Tru her painting. "He took me away yesterday. But I haven't seen him today."

Tru stares closely at the painting, noticing what appears to be a blond guy with a Mickey Mouse Hat, wearing the same colors Harrison was wearing on day one. She already knows that her brother did see Echo on day one, but is amazed that Echo remembers that incident. Noticing sparks of memory from her sister, Tru tries to investigate more. "Echo, do you remember where Harrison took you yesterday?"

"He said he wanted to take me home."

"I wish he did!" Says Tru to herself. Eager to dig more and find out just how aware Echo is of the rewind and if it affects her in any way, Tru asks, "This is going to sound weird… but do you ever feel like you're experiencing a déjà vu?

"Déjà who?"

"Déjà vu… it means seeing something happen and feeling that it had happened before; like you're experiencing something twice. I mean, do you sometimes feel like you're living the same day all over again, like this day for example?"

"Sometimes the people in my head do. They feel like they know what's going to happen before it happens… and sometimes this happens to me too… in here…"

Realizing how wrong she was to think of Echo as an empty shell, and how disorienting it can be for someone who is expected to be in a mindless state, Tru asks with great concern, "Have you talked to anyone about this feeling that you get… how you know about things before they happen?"

"I tried… they say I'm broken. But I know I'm not broken!"

The words hang in midair for a moment, bigger and louder than what Tru could fathom. She was obviously mistaken and a little fast to judge. Echo is not just an empty vessel for persona downloads… she is aware. Tru reaches out her hand and touches her sister's. "No… You're not broken… You're definitely not broken." She confirms.

"I try to be my best…. even if it's not good enough." Echo explains.

Realizing how her previous outburst had affected Echo, Tru quickly tries to comfort her, "You know what… your best is _always_ good enough. I believe that now. And your _very_ best is still to come."

Echo smiles in relief.

"Tru…" Jack's voice calls her from behind. She turns her head to face him. "It's time." He says slowly with apparent sorrow in his eyes. Next to him stands Echo's handler, Boyd, whose life has been on the line today and the reason for this coincidental meeting between the separated twins.

Tru stands up to leave, but Echo quickly follows and gives her the painting.

So overcome by the thrill of emotions and the sudden rush of adrenaline, Tru hugs Echo forcefully and without hesitance. An instant that leaves both sisters feeling shut off from the rest of the world and connected to nothing except the language of their souls. A language so harmoniously eloquent that it travels beyond the mind's cluttered ramblings, landing straight into the silence of the heart. Tru feels Echo's puzzlement. Echo feels Tru's frustration. No words; only rushing heartbeats. A union experienced only 24 years ago when they both shared a womb.

They break the embrace and face each other. Both sad. Both crying.

"I will be seeing you again… very soon." Tru promises.

"In a déjà vu?"

Tru smiles and wipes a tear off Echo's face. "Hopefully in reality. And when I do, I'm gonna get you outa here."

"Where will we go?"

"Home."


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12 **

_New York – Los Angeles Phone Call_

Adelle DeWitt is on the phone with Richard Davies. She has just informed him of Jack's decision to remove Richard's previous calling imprint. Jack's wishes were met. He can no longer relive days and he does not feel the need to stop Tru from saving lives any more. He finally sees Tru's calling as rightful and has made it his duty to stand by her side and try and help her through her mission until she finds a way to save her sister. The Dollhouse's support however proved to be shocking to his mentor, Richard Davies.

"It was NOT your call." Yells Richard at Adelle on the phone. " We had an agreement and what you just did is a direct and shameless violation of that agreement. You do remember that I'm a lawyer, don't you… and quite a vicious one. I make the rules and you follow, is that understood?"

"Threats are very unbecoming of a man of your status Mr. Davies. I highly recommend that you take a deep breath or two before you throw any more accusations at me. I am the lady of this House and will do what I see is in its best interest." Answers Adelle with the grace and stamina she's well known and respected for.

"And you honestly believe that wiping Jack off of his enhancement imprint is in your best interest? Especially now that Tru knows about this place and that her twin sister is trapped in there with no identity? You really are that naïve?"

"Are you the one that naïve Richard to think that Tru is capable of doing anything?"

"You certainly don't know Tru! You've already witnessed Caroline's stubbornness, but when it comes to family, she's not half as stubborn as Tru. Besides, what you took away from Jack was not yours to mess with. I paid for his release and enhancement with my own daughter's freedom."

"It seems that you are missing out on the point that Jack himself was never yours to mess with either; and nor was Caroline." Says Adelle. "She gave us enough trouble that eventually turned against her. Her only way out was in. She volunteered."

"And who do you think helped Caroline find all that evidence against Rossum and the Dollhouse? It was me all along. Can't you realize that I was the hidden puppeteer outside the Dollhouse? And when the time came and her ability was activated, I had to push the last button and get her in too deep. She volunteered because I pushed her to it. Jack on the other hand was my reward, it was a fair trade."

"He was the one chosen to be released in exchange for Caroline because his time was almost up. Our 5 year contract with Jack, just like our contracts with all the other actives, states he gets his full identity back upon release with one added enhancement. Upon a long conversation that we allowed you to have with him on the day of his release, the power to relive days - your previous power - was decided to be that enhancement. The rest was an imprint of your values and points of view. It was your persuasion but Jack's decision nevertheless. He's no longer an active; he's a free man now and has the right to make his own decisions. If he chooses to keep that power then we will keep it. If he chooses to work on Tru's side instead, then we will respect his wishes. It was his choice to remove that imprint today and it's neither yours nor the Dollhouse's place to deny him that right."

"It was a package, Adelle, a whole package; one that you will give back or I'll make sure Rossum has their say on this situation."

"Now there's no need for extreme measures Mr. Davies; I'm sure we can find common grounds. Tell me what you think we should do to compensate, and I'll be more than happy to serve. Provided that it does not entail re-imprinting Jack with something he does not approve of."

"Forget about Jack. It's too late now. Though he hasn't fully acknowledged it yet, but I knew he was getting too close to Tru in the past few weeks, on an emotional level that is. He even volunteered to help her on the Christmas Eve case. It was only a matter of time. His bitterness has turned him against me, and I guess I am the one to be blamed for that. I never should've let him in on so much information."

"Does that information include knowledge of any supernatural mean to access the Source of Tru's and Echo's powers by any chance? Because if Echo goes on reliving days, she will evolve into a fully mature person, one that consists of several different personas that neither one of us can estimate or control the amount of damage she can cause!" Justifies Adelle. "We need access to have power over Echo's ability, and Jack seems to be quite certain of how to get it for us."

"Jack was playing you all along." Says Richard. "He only knows what I know, and that is definitely not enough information for something that mystical. Do you think that if there actually was an easy access to the Source of this power we'd be having this conversation? There is no such thing. Believe me, I've tried."

"I understand how complicated this whole thing is, but I cannot go on ignoring that Echo is turning into a dangerous force. Do you have any idea what kind of danger she will be on all of us? She will literally have over 35 different personalities and intellects stuffed in her brain. That is a serious problem."

"Wouldn't that make her a genius?" Wonders Richard.

"A genius with a superpower! Not a very comforting fact knowing that she's already filled with a lot of grudge against the Dollhouse. We've had another similar situation with one of our former actives happen here in the past. His name was Alpha, but with him it was a technical mistake. We cannot allow it to happen again, especially not with Echo!"

"Adelle, I think the solution lies in the problem itself. I'm shocked that you're not as sharp as I thought you were to pick up on that." Says Richard confidently.

"What are you talking about?"

"Since your clumsiness has cost me a soldier, you will make up for it by giving me another one….. Echo!"

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Adelle asks in disbelief.

"You will use Jack's imprint on Echo. And unlike Jack, I expect her to be obedient to me, and stay that way."

"How do you expect her to be obedient to you after everything that you have done to her and everything you have put her through, Mr. Davies?"

"You're not listening correctly. I don't want Caroline… I want Echo as a sleeper active imprinted with my values and beliefs. If she is going to evolve into a unique and genius collection of people all rolled into one the way you claim she is, then I want her on my side when that happens. Now you make sure she's all wrapped up and standing at my door in a matter of 24 hours. And before you ask, yes, you will get paid quite generously for this deal."

"You plan on having the twins fight against each other?" Asks Adelle.

"What… Haven't you ever heard of the story of 'Cain and Abel'?"

"It's cruelty."

"It's life."

Call ends, Richard turns to face a man sitting on the couch in his office and says, "It'll be the two of you against Tru & Jack now. You will be her handler."

The man lifts his head up and smiles with satisfaction. Then the smile turns into a loud laughter.

"What's so funny?" Asks Richard, "Alpha, what are you laughing at?"

"Nothing! I'm just glad you took my advice. It's about time! … Omega and I will finally be a team!" Alpha says with a sigh.

"Omega?"

"Of course! It's the perfect name for her, don't you think? It represents 'The End'."

"Of life? Or the Dollhouse?" Asks Richard.

"Both!" Answers Alpha with a wide smile. "I promise you, together we're invincible… we won't let you down."

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**Hope you enjoyed the story so far. Only one chapter left. **


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13 **

_Day 4_

_New York_

_Cemetery_

Standing in front of her mother's grave early in the morning, Tru is crying in angst and despair. Completely distracted by the mixed feelings and confusing events, she did not notice Jack watching her from nearby.

"Why did you keep it a secret? What were you afraid of?" She asks her dead mother, desperately searching for logical answers. "I'm sure you had a good reason to do what you did. You died trying to protect me, and you gave me the power to relive days, the least you could do was tell me."

"She couldn't risk losing you too." Jack explains as he approaches her from behind. He understands how upset Tru is that her mother Elise never told her about Caroline, even after finding out that she was still alive and staying with a foster family in Los Angeles. That secret has cost Elise her life. "She was hurt and confused… and concerned for the safety of her children." Jack continues, "What you don't know won't hurt you. She obviously kept it a secret to protect you. You can't blame her for how things turned out. It was all your father's doing."

"Who the hell do you think you are to elucidate her motives? She didn't have to be alone in this, I could have helped her."

"You were 12!"

"I could have done something! And why are you even here?" She shouts at him while shakily trying to wipe away her tears.

"I was worried about you, Tru. You were so quiet on that flight back to New York, especially after I told you the truth about your father's part in the murder of your mother. And with the new change in his plan and seeing Echo here with him, I was worried you'd do something drastic." She looks at him with red teary eyes. "I'm sorry, I just heard about Echo's new engagement. I'm here for support. And I was hoping you would consider me your friend..."

"Not to rain on your parade, but you're not my friend. You're nothing but a damned robot controlled by daddy dearest, just like everybody else."

"Then let me make up for that. Let me help you."

"I'm not the one who needs help. I'm the one who gets asked for help, remember?"

"You have all the right in the world to be furious right now Tru, but it won't change the fact that you're the one being controlled and manipulated the most. Your father's managed to get rid of your mother and alienate your sister, and then he used me to slow you down. Now he's played his last card and won your sister over to his side along with the Dollhouse's craziest alumnae. He did all this to stop YOU. You're his biggest fear… and his weakest link. The question is: what are you going to do about it? The ball is in your court now, and this is a merciless game. Are you up to it?"

"Oh, this is not a game. This is war!" Tru replies with determination, remembering how she threatened Jack a year ago in the same cemetery, secretly wishing that things are still as simple as they were back then. The threat now is directed to her father.

Jack rushes to walk next to her as she prepares to leave and tells her: "I did some digging and found out that because of her ability, Echo is about to become a combination of all of the people she had been imprinted with in the past… all except Caroline. Aren't you a little worried about that?"

"It's all just programming… just lies."

"Maybe the lies are true. You see to her it IS true, it's all true. Echo is turning into a rogue doll with multiple personalities, none of them your sister's and none of them is playing pretend. She's broken."

"She may be broken but she's not defeated." She says.

"No but soon _you_ will be if you keep ignoring that what you are up against is not Caroline or the sweet innocent Echo that you've met for 10 minutes. It's a Frankenstein whose main mission is to stop you from yours."

"They can take away her life but not her spirit. Caroline is still a part of Echo." Insists Tru.

"Caroline is in a hard drive! She's gone. There is a stranger in her place or a bunch of strangers as a matter of fact, and you must figure out a way to free her before she slips away..." Worries Jack.

"She may turn into all of those people, but none of them is her… none of them is Caroline. Caroline is still there, in spirit. I felt her. Don't ask me how... It might be a bizarre twin radar thing… But I know."

"Tru, don't let your emotions get the best of you. Echo needs your help now while she's still blank. Her doll-state makes her weak and easy to control, something your father is using for his advantage. But you can still change that… you can still save her."

"That's where my new friendship with FBI Agent Paul Ballard comes in handy. I helped him find the Dollhouse, and he's promised to help me get Caroline's imprint back."

"You think it's that easy? Those people are good. They know how to deal with these situations and stay hidden. Echo on the other hand can be turned to your side now, before she becomes your worst nightmare."

"She won't. No matter how many characters will rise and try to bring chaos… her true voice, her inner light will always be present and will grow stronger every day until it has control over all of the other imprints. I believe that."

"How can you believe that? You don't understand how the system works."

"I have faith in her." Tru yells.

"You don't even know her!"

"I know how I felt, OK? I believe in that... I _have_ to believe in that… It's all I got."

Realizing how upset he's making her, Jack tries another approach to the conversation. "Well, for the sake of argument, let's just say you're wrong. Think of her as another one of your cases. She's not too different from all of those corpses asking for your help."

Tru stops walking. Jack stops as well and focuses his eyes on her.

"That's what I thought when I first sat with her," she admits, "but minutes later she proved me wrong. She made me realize that we are not our thoughts and memories; we are beyond that. Our purest essence resides in the soul. That is what defines us as human. We are not physical beings living a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings living a physical experience. If anything my calling should have taught me, it's that. Ironically, the only time I learned this lesson was when I met who I thought was a mindless worthless breathing doll carrying my sister's body. I guess I was blinded by my own programming. Echo is free of this emotional and intellectual poison that conditions who we are and how we think, which eventually results in what we do and how we act. She's beyond that. She's transcended that. She's liberated. Those dolls being called actives is perfectly appropriate. They are active because they are living their true essence. We are the ones who are dead!"

Jack's eyes narrow. He's still having trouble reading Tru's direction with this analogy. "It almost sounds like you're about to sign in to join the Dollhouse yourself!"

"I'm just saying that I've finally seen the light, and I have Echo to thank for it. Caroline wanted to free people, but instead she became free of herself and everything that was limiting her and weighing her down. And I think that's exactly how she will succeed in what she originally set out to do. She didn't know that her own father manipulated events to get her there. She believed she was doing it for the people who are trapped there. She believed that her ability to relive days could help her find a way out. She sacrificed herself to free others. It wasn't my father's trap that she fell for; otherwise she would have gotten there against her will. But she didn't. It was her decision… her choice. I respect her for that."

"Well, in that case, she isn't too different from me." Finally admits Jack. "I gave up on my ability to relive days so I could help you. And I made that decision in spite of my imprint. I rebelled against my programming. That was free will too."

"What made you do that?" Tru asks softly, knowing that she had been focusing her attention too much on her sister that she forgot all about Jack and his part in the events.

"It was burning me up inside to see the pain in your heart and realize that I was a part of what had caused it, even without me knowing that." He says tenderly. "I'm not the enemy Tru, I'm the victim. Just like your mother… just like your sister… just like you. That's why I need you to trust me… to let me in; otherwise, you will be tortured by the future… of things that are yet to be. You need me on your side. I'm the only one who can help you and who has risked it all to do so. You have to trust me."

"That's the craziest thing of all… I do!"

* * *

**THE END**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**Well, that's it. This is the end of 'Two of a Kind'. There might be a sequel at some point in the future, though ;) I hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it. Please leave comments and/or reviews. Thank you very much for your time. **

**Also, you might have noticed that I used quotes from both Tru Calling and Dollhouse theme songs throughout this chapter. I felt they both suited what I was trying to conclude. Besides both songs are really beautiful :)**

**And just to be clear :- **

**Tru Calling was on air between 2003 – 2005. ****Eliza Dushku was approximately 22 – 24 years old. Tru was approximately 22 – 24 years old.**

**Dollhouse was on air between 2009 – 2010. ****Eliza Dushku was approximately 28 – 29 years old. Caroline/Echo was approximately 22 – 24 years old. **

**I had to choose one of these two categories to be the time setting for my story, so:**

**Tru and Caroline got their powers right after graduation as decided by their mother, which means they're both 22. And like the actress who plays them, I've decided that they were born in December 1980, so that means they got their abilities in 2003. Therefore, the time setting for my story is in 2005. I hope that's clear.**

**Also, I chose their birthday to be December 12****th**** because in Tru Calling's episode 'In The Dark', Tru celebrates her birthday a couple of weeks before the Christmas episode :D**


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